2014 DE Beast Willis Talks about UF Camp

Bob Redman

06/17/2011

When they show up just leaving the 9th grade at 6-4 and 250 pounds, you just have to take a look at them. Then when they move as quickly as some older and much smaller players of talent, you take more notice. When they show off brute strength and a willingness to go hard every down, you know you have something. Meet class of 2014 defensive end Gerald Willis who attended camp at Florida this week.

Gerald Willis had 10 sacks as a ninth grader at New Orleans' Edna Karr Magnet School. Who knows what that will translate to down the road as he grows older, stronger and quicker… but college scouts are already taking notice.

Willis was at the Florida camp on Sunday hosted by head coach Will Muschamp. The conditions were raw enough that he "lost five pounds at the Florida camp. The Swamp was so hot."

He was able to take instruction from one of the National Football League's best all time players when Bryant Young tutored the big lineman for over an hour and a half.

After previously camping at LSU and Mississippi State, Willis had high praise for what he did at the Florida camp.

"I think it was a great experience," he said. "I really had a fun time. I really liked it better than the other colleges I visited.

"I really liked Coach Young. He showed me a lot of techniques and stuff. He told me to keep working and said I was going to make it big if I keep putting the effort out."

Defensive coordinator Dan Quinn also was in the mix with the coaching and Willis took note of the compliments Quinn threw his way.

"He told me that I did a good job," Willis said of Quinn. "He said I get off the ball real quick. He also told me that I really fit in at the Swamp."

Quinn and Young gave him valuable information that he can take with him moving forward.

"I learned a lot of techniques that I didn't know about," he said. "I know they will help me get better. They say if I will probably grow 2-4 more inches and I just need to maintain my weight."

There was no extensive sightseeing of Florida's campus, but Florida's facilities certainly made an impact on the young lineman.

"We walked around, no one really gave us a tour, but I really liked the football facilities. I am going to try and visit Florida after football season. I am going to try and visit there any time I get to."

A trip to Alabama's camp is in store for Willis this weekend. There he will no doubt show off the traits that have already gotten him noticed and he's just finished the 9th grade.

"My get-off and my speed around the corner are what make me different," he said before relaying his own personal motto. "I am going to go hard or go home."